1905 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



US 



We are glad to note that the Rural Bee- 

 keeper is showing a healthy progress. Its 

 editor is an up-to-date bee-keeper, and ap- 

 pears to be able to pick out as well as write 

 good bee-matter himself. 



THE HOFFMAN FRAME A STEP BACKWARD. 



A VERY readable article on the subject of 

 Hoffman frames appears in the Rural Bee- 

 keeper for May, written by our old friend L. 

 Stachelhausen, of Texas, well known to our 

 readers. He believes its adoption was a 

 mistake, and a step backward, and his opin- 

 ion is well worthy of careful consideration. 



Strange how differently people look at 

 this frame. Mr. Harry Lathrop, in this is- 

 sue, is only one of a thousand extensive bee- 

 keepers who use and prefer this frame to 

 any other; and yet it is, perhaps, true that 

 there are a thousand others who would not 

 have it. It is the old question again, that 

 not every one can be induced to use the same 

 device. The users of the old-style closed- 

 end Quinby frame could not be persuaded to 

 adopt the old-style Langstroth unspaced 

 frame; and I presume our friend Stachel- 

 hausen would feel that he would have to get 

 out of the bee business if some power were 

 to compel him to use any form of frame 

 with closed or half -closed uprights. 



We sell four styles of frames, and are 

 willing to supply whatever is called for. 



BABY NUCLEI ; SOME IMPORTANT REQUISITES 



IN ORDER TO MAKE THEM WORK IN THE 



HANDS OF A BEGINNER. 



We have been trying these baby nuclei 

 with and without brood. Our experience is 

 that, in the forming of them at least, there 

 should be brood, and, if possible, a queen of 

 some sort— a virgin will do just as well. 

 Without both, the bees are quite liable to 

 desert. As a general thing the bees will 

 remain if they be given a virgin, even if 

 they do not have brood providing she is ac- 

 cepted. But there ought to be brood to sup- 

 ply young hatching bees to replace the few 

 bees that may desert. When the virgin gets 

 to laying, her brood will be converted into 

 hatching bees again. Another factor that 

 contributes toward the success of these ba- 

 by nuclei is to distribute them in shady 

 places remote from the entrances of strong 

 colonies. In some instrances we found that 

 a big stock two or three feet beneath, with 

 flying bees going in at a fast rate, will at- 

 tract the bees out of the newly formed baby 

 nucleus above. You see they hardly know 

 where their home is; and, when once in the 

 air, they will join the crowd or the stream 

 of flying bees going into the big hive. 



There are many things an expert can do 



with a baby nucleus; but a beginner, at 

 least, had better follow the suggestions giv- 

 en above. 



the SHAKE- swarm PLAN AT VERNON BURT'S 

 YARD. 



As I looked over Mr. Burt's bees the last 

 few days, and saw how they were piling in 

 at the entrances, I said, "You will soon 

 have swarms at the rate they are storing 

 honey." 



" I have not had any yet," he answered. 



"But you will have," I said, "and then' 

 what are you going to do?" 



" I do not think I shall have very many 

 swarms, because I practice the shake-swarm 

 plan. ' ' 



"Now, Mr. Burt, please tell me exactly 

 how you do it, for every one seems to have 

 some modification of this method." 



" I carefully watch for those colonies," 

 he said, "that are preparing to swarm. I 

 put an empty Danzenbaker hive with frames 

 of foundation on the old stand, removing the 

 old hive to one side, and take out a frame of 

 brood and the queen, and put them in the 

 new hive. Then I shake a large portion of 

 the bees from the old hive in front of the 

 entrance of the new one, give it the super 

 from the old one, and then move the old one 

 to a new location, which will still further 

 give up of its flying bees to the shaken 

 swarm now on the old stand. The bees will 

 go right on storing in the supers just the 

 same, and there will be no further trouble 

 for that season." 



This is the same plan Mr. Burt pursued 

 last year and the year before that with such 

 success. 



"But, say, Burt, why don't you try the 

 Sibbald plan? " 



"Too much work, and too slow," he re- 

 plied. "Then I know how flying bees will 

 find their old entrances, and this would, to 

 a great extent, defeat the object of the 

 manipulation. But why should I change, ' ' 

 he continued, "when the shake plan is so 

 satisfactory, and so little work?" 



There is scarcely a honey-producer in the 

 United States who, with so little labor, pro- 

 duces finer or more comb honey than our 

 friend Vernon Burt, of Mallet Creek, O. 

 He is never in a hurry, seems to take things 

 very easy, winters his bees outdoors in 

 Dazenbaker hives and winter cases, and then 

 uses those same winter cases for honey- 

 production. 



A KINK IN COMB-HONEY PRODUCTION. 



But I came very near forgetting one im- 

 portant secret to Mr. Burt's success, and 

 that is, that he puts several thicknesses of 

 burlap on top of the super for comb honey. 

 Over the whole he slips down a large winter- 

 ing-case. Said he, "I have observed it over 

 and over again, that a comb-honey super 

 without these several thicknesses of cloth 

 and winter-case over it will not be filled as 

 rapidly as one that is protected. Why," 

 said he, "without protection the bees will 

 desert the super entirely on cool nights, and 

 all work will stop for the time being." 



